Poetry Play Inspired By the Classics Inspires
There are fewer more refreshing things than a revival of
classical mythology, nor fewer more impressive things than the creation of an
entire play in lyrical verse. Fletcher N. Brown’s Song of Seasons bravely attempts both, and succeeds in a feat of
creative gusto and technical flare.
M4 West Media puts on a remarkable production at Tottenham
Chances, with the playwright Brown and Rebecca Tranter co-directing the fantastically
original work, with a brim-full of acting talent to realise it.
Adopting theatre-in-the-round, the performance has an exquisite
intensity as the characters, led by the mortals Diogenes the cynic (Orwi
Immanuel Ameh), and Sappho the poet (Anna Nicholson), who is the purported
author of the eponymously named poem Song
of Seasons, take us into a strange world that straddles classic mythology
and magical realism.
The plot focusses on the relationship the two human protagonists
have with their Gods, who play with them to fight out their own celestial court
battles. The God Hephaestus (Simon Willshire) seeks to betray his own sister
the Goddess Voluptus (Holly Ashman), who is adored and worshipped by Sappho, a
love affair that eventually leads to the latter’s ascension to deity. All the
while the Goddess Demeter (Rachael Harrison) and Hephaestus fight over how best
to treat mankind, over whether to grant them violence and death and other
vices, resulting in dramatic interplay in the first act. As a spiritual
enforcer, the menacingly masked “will of the Gods” (Nikolaos Brahimllari), much
like the puppeteers from the Handspring Puppet Company of Warhorse fame, unobtrusively but with great effect carries out the
intentions of his masters upon the hapless mortals.
The tumultuous plot is narrated by the Goddess Diana
(Rebecca Omogbehin), whose presence and comforting yet authoritative voice
carries the story forward with a mythical reassurance amongst the mania of
events unfolding. The beautifully intriguing lyrical script, having the
technical difficulty of a Shakespeare or Marlowe text, is completely mastered
by the cast, particularly the narrator, and the philosophical treatise is brought
to life to ensure complete clarity for a modern audience. Ameh’s Diogenes, a
tortured and manic character, is a harrowing performance, while the menacing
Hephastus is carried excellently by Willshire, and Ashman and Harrison’s portrayals
of Voluptus and Demeter had emotional depth that was believable and entrancing.
Nicholson’s Sappho creates the intensity befitting classical heroines, with her
finale being the culmination of an earthly battle that made every heart-felt
prophecy and declaration traumatic and poignant.
It’s rare that an independent production has a cast with professionalism
and talent equal to RSC productions and a directorial and production quality
that is impeccable, along with nascent creativity. Albert Balbastre deserves
special mention for an incredible sound track that tells the story of battle
fields and storms. Also the set, costume, make-up and mask design of Paulina
Rzeszowska, Tessa Richards, Allan Plenderleith and Martin Tranter give a
charming and original classical dystopian aesthetic to the whole piece.
Let’s hope that we see more from this writer, production
company and cast in the near future, as surely not much can stop the technical
and intellectual prowess, and the sheer gutsy creativity, that drove Song of Seasons. A rare pleasure to see
this in action.
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